Hayagreeva | Hayagreeva Maddi | Kadalebele payasa

Festive and authentic hayagreeva maddi
08/04/2016 11:02:37 PM vindhyadesai

Hayagreeva maddi is a payasa/payasam dish from Udupi region. I made this for Bheemana Amavasya but it can be made for many festivals. It is simple to make, the only detail to pay attention to is when you are cooking gram dal/chana dal/kadale bele. Before we begin the recipe, I would like to mention a little *story/legend* associated with the origin of ‘Hayagreeva Maddi’, I read in a book.
Once there was a sculptor who was trying to make an idol of Lord Ganesha, however all his efforts in making the sculpted idol turned into the head of a horse. He finally gave up and sculpted the idol into the shape of a horses’ head and stashed it away. One night, the Lord himself appeared in the scluptors’ dream and blessed him and asked him to donate the horses’ head idol that he had sculpted to Sri Vadirajaru. The same night Sri Vadirajaru also dreamt about the idol. The next day the sculptor brought in the idol and Sri Vadirajaru established the idol in Sonda in Sirsi, Karnataka. Everyday he started worshipping the idol and as offering/naivedya he made Hayagreeva Maddi a payasa made of gram (horses’ favourite food) and jaggery. Make this authentic and traditional dish from Karnataka for an upcoming festival 🙂 ... “Hayagreeva | Hayagreeva Maddi | Kadalebele payasa”

Sajjige | Sajjge | Bellada Sajjige | How to make sajjige hoorna

Super quick and easy, sajjige or jaggery rava sheera
08/01/2016 10:33:03 PM vindhyadesai

The festival season is here. Shravana masa for year 2016 starts in 2 days. Tomorrow is the big festival/habba ‘Bheemana Amavasya‘. Celebrate festivals with fervour yet with simplicity. It will make the festivals more enjoyable. Here’s a quick sweet recipe. Sajjige is made in different ways, I learnt this recipe from my MIL. Simple and super quick to make. ... “Sajjige | Sajjge | Bellada Sajjige | How to make sajjige hoorna”

Mango Kulfi | Aam Kulfi

Dreamy creamy mango kulfi flavoured with pista, elaichi and kesar
07/24/2016 12:46:39 PM vindhyadesai

The most preferred dessert when you are looking for an authentic traditional recipe. Mangoes and thick milk flavoured with elaichi, kesar and pista-badam that is a dream combination of ingredients. It used to be made using thick milk rabri/rabdi and adding flavours to it. As the recipe has evolved over the years, it is made with condensed milk, evaporated milk etc. The thick mixture is then frozen in matkas (earthernware pot) to make matka kulfis. Now, one can buy kulfi moulds from shops or even use glasses to freeze kulfis.
One of the mango dishes I made this summer. Enjoy creamy mango kulfis! Try out other mango recipes ... “Mango Kulfi | Aam Kulfi”

Doodh Pedha | Milk Pedha | Doodh ke Pedhe | How to make soft milk pedhas | Doodh pedhas without condensed milk

A mouthful of milky fudgy goodness, soft doodh pedha
07/22/2016 8:05:28 PM vindhyadesai

A small thing of joy is to eat a doodh pedha. It is one of the most popular sweets sold in sweet shops. Imagine a big line of pedhas lined up on the other side of the counter. There are so many versions of this pedha, kesar-elaichi, elaichi, pista-kesar and so on. The ones that you get in Nandini (a milk brand in Karnataka) are pure milk pedhas. The marking on them makes the pedhas even more inviting. Try making these soft doodh pedhas at home, roll them up into small balls or pedhas/pedhe or even try and make the Nandini replicas. I used a fork to create a Nandini shop/bakery like pedha with a fork. It is actually a reverse of their shape (complementary shape). I love them nonetheless, they are milk  pedhas after all.
Here are I have used only milk and there is also a short-cut recipe with condensed milk which I will post soon. I have flavoured them with elaichi/cardamom, I wanted to make them plain this time. I sometimes add kesar/saffron or pista or both but elaichi/cardamom is something that I always add to the pedhas/pedhe. I have added a lot of pictures stepwise to show consistency in each step. ... “Doodh Pedha | Milk Pedha | Doodh ke Pedhe | How to make soft milk pedhas | Doodh pedhas without condensed milk”

Seviyaan Kheer | Whole Wheat Seviyaan Kheer | Shavige Payasa | Vermicelli Kheer

Creamy and delicious seviyaan kheer with roasted dry nuts
07/14/2016 9:40:46 PM vindhyadesai

This is one of the most common sweets/desserts made in India for any festive occasion. For festivals, celebrations, weddings, functions, seviyaan kheer/shaavige kheer is a default option. It tastes good at room temperature or warm or even chilled. I have used whole wheat seviyaan (thin and long) and added less sugar. Add more sugar if you like and add more milk if you want the consistency to be thinner. Chopped dry nuts like almonds, pistachios, cashews and raisins add a wonderful aromatic flavour and crunch. I have dolled up my vermicelli kheer, it is one of my favourite desserts and I love it slightly chilled. ... “Seviyaan Kheer | Whole Wheat Seviyaan Kheer | Shavige Payasa | Vermicelli Kheer”

Lauki Halwa | Sorekayi Halwa | Sorekayi Dumrotu

A simple homemade halwa for the sweet tooth
06/21/2016 9:56:35 PM vindhyadesai

A simple homemade halwa is very satisfying. Flavours added just from aromatic elaichi/cardamom and smooth creaminess added from milk. Lauki or bottle gourd is like butter and this halwa has an almost melt in the mouth texture. A quick fix sweet when guests are coming over. The best part is, it can be served at room temperature or even a little warm. It is soothing to the gut especially if you have eaten spicy food or feeling acidic. I have not added khoya/khova to this halwa. Dumrotu(special halwa of Karnataka) is generally made using white ashgourd but both vegetables are very similar in texture and their halwa is similar. ... “Lauki Halwa | Sorekayi Halwa | Sorekayi Dumrotu”

Aam Shrikhand | Aamrkhand | Mango Shrikhand

Light, creamy mango and yogurt based dessert
05/29/2016 2:11:50 PM vindhyadesai

Aamrkhand or mango shrikhand or aam shrikhand is a mango and yogurt based no-cook dessert. It’s the mango season! Mango the king of all fruits makes this dessert very special. It is light and creamy and the mango flavours ooze through from the dessert. If the mangoes are sweet only a little sugar will be enough to cut through all the flavours. Saffron is added for enhanced flavour and gives a deep colour to shrikhand. Hung curd or yogurt separated from all the whey is used to make aamrkhand. I also love making kesar elaichi shrikhand. Aamrkhand is generally eaten with puris or just as dessert. ... “Aam Shrikhand | Aamrkhand | Mango Shrikhand”

Kalakand

Soft moist milk sweet, a sure crowd pleaser
05/05/2016 7:18:09 PM vindhyadesai

Sweets made with milk which are soft, moist and rich are liked by most. The kind of colourful and tasty sweets lined up in a sweet shop always attracts everyone. But they can be quite expensive to buy and are mostly reserved for special occasions. But what if these kinds of sweets can be made at home with simple ingredients. One such sweet is ‘kalakand’, it is one of my favourite sweets and I absolutely love making it. They turn out to be so moist and are very fresh when made at home. They have to be made ahead of time because it needs some time to set and tastes better that way. ... “Kalakand”

Peach and Blueberry Crumble

Juicy fruits baked with a crumbly top served with vanilla icecream
04/24/2016 8:23:08 PM vindhyadesai

Crumble is a famous English dessert made from juicy fruits like peaches, plums, apricots, cherries, blueberries mixed with sugar. On top of these fruits a crumble topping made of flour, sugar and butter is added and baked off in an oven till crisp and golden. ‘Crisp’ is another variation of a crumble which generally has oats on top which crisp up when baking. This one is a delectable dessert and I am sure everyone will love it especially if it is served with vanilla icecream. Here I have used peaches and blueberries. Peaches are best in summer, flavourful and juicy. Peaches are like almond fruits, cherry fruit or plums. I love the crumble recipes from Ina Garten of Barefoot Contessa. ... “Peach and Blueberry Crumble”

Haal Kesari | Milk Kesari

Fudgy, melt in the mouth sweet, oozing with ghee and kesari flavour
04/21/2016 9:34:35 PM vindhyadesai

Made with ordinary ingredients found at home, it makes for a very satisfying sweet or dessert to satisfy your sweet tooth. It is made with fine cream of wheat, cashews, raisins, milk, ghee and sugar with saffron enhancing the flavour & colour. Most importantly it can be served warm, at room temperature and you can even make it ahead of time. The classic South Indian breakfast combination of upma & kesari together is called chow chow bhaat. ... “Haal Kesari | Milk Kesari”